Whatever happened to Pia Zadora?

[npincus]

The baby-faced B-movie actress who married that filthy-rich, much-older coot, Meshulum Riklis? I haven't heard a peep about her in years. She won a Golden Globe for her performance in the movie, "Butterfly", I believe.

I thought of her yesterday because I was thinking of naming my cat Pee-pee Zadora (she pees on my couch occasionally).






my cat (I'm thinking of naming her Zsa Zsa, instead)

[terrya]

1. She did a cameo in "Hairspray"

But I haven't heard a thing from her since.

[cmkramer]

14. She was also in "Santa Claus Conquers The Martians" when she was a kid

She played a Martian child. She was like Bo Derek in that she was with her much older husband when she was still under-aged and they got married when she was around 18 or so.

I know for the most part she was concentrating on her music career -- and raising her children. I'm pretty sure her kids by Riklis are grown or at least in their later teens. But I think she may have a younger child or two by her second husband. She actually had a few very minor pop hits -- although she mostly concentrated on doing standards -- and even copped a Grammy nomination.

She was never a particularly talented actress -- unless you can consider a willingness to remove your clothes "acting" -- but she had a good sense of humor about herself.

[arwalden]

2. I Always Liked Her...

... she's not without talent. I thought she was great as one of the beatnicks in the movie "Hairspray". I think she has a lovely voice. But I also think that her name had a lot to do with her not being taken too seriously and being the butt of many jokes.

Last I heard she was retired and enjoying being a wife and mother.

[npincus]

4. she went to the School of Performing Arts in NYC

made famous in the movie "Fame" (which I never saw). Now that you mention it, I have heard her sing and she has a terrific voice. The man she married was so much older and so, so rich that didn't generate good buzz for her either. In the same way Anna Nicole has been ridiculed for marrying that mega-rich geezer. Though Zadora's husband wasn't as old as Anna Nicole's.

Do you know, is she still married to the same fellow?

[progmom]

3. damn you - now I have an earworm of her with Jermaine Jackson

"When The Rain Begins To Fall"

video here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HDFe40zR6ME

[npincus]

5. OMG- Hilarious!

Now I have one, too! (an earworm).

Wow, that was so 80's.

[begin_within]

6. She has a terrific singing voice and Frank Sinatra once encouraged her to

go in to singing full-time and record a lot of the standards, but her singing career never really took off that I know of. She was nominated for a Grammy in 1982, but hasn't done too much lately. I have seen her singing on TV and she can really belt those old songs.

[kay1864]

7. Wikipedia is your friend

Zadora now lives with her children (from two failed marriages) in wealthy retirement, thanks to ex-husband Meshulam Riklis. Zadora gained notoriety when she and Riklis bought the Beverly Hills landmark mansion Pickfair in January of 1988 and later demolished it. The mansion, former home of early movie stars Douglas Fairbanks and Mary Pickford, was one of Beverly Hills' most famous privately owned properties.

In 2002 and 2003, Pia occasionally hosted the radio program Coast-to-Coast AM, alternating on the weekends with Barbara Simpson. Coast to Coast AM is a late-night syndicated radio talk show which deals with a variety of topics, but usually ones that relate to the paranormal.


2005 update: LOS ANGELES, April 24 (UPI) -- Pickfair, the famed Los Angeles estate of silent film stars Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks, has sold for about $20 million to a neighbor.

The 15-bedroom, 26,000-square-foot mansion was rebuilt almost entirely in 1994 by its sellers, businessman Meshulam Riklis and actress Pia Zadora, the Los Angeles Times reported Sunday.

[npincus]

8. oh, thanks

I was lazy, I guess. And interested in DUers recollections!

[kay1864]

9. No prob, I love trivia like this

And Pia Zadora is among the trivialest!

[npincus]

10. tee hee

she certainly had a unique look.

[kay1864]

11. Oh she's nice to look at, no doubt

I was referring to her purchase of a Golden Globe for "Butterfly". Scandalous at the time, and made her look, well, trivial. :P

Too bad though--apparently she could have made it on her singing. Instead, she'll be remembered as a failed actress, rather than a successful singer who couldn't act.

FWIW, she was 23 in 1977 when she married Meshulam Riklis (aged 54). They were married for 16 years.

[radwriter0555]

12. She donated an entire building to the school our kids went to.

She was very active as a parent.

And I've been to Pickfair. It was... boring.

[Sugar Smack]

13. She and Rebecca De Mornay could be sisters.

[Sequoia]

15. I saw her at a Halloween party in the early 1980s

at a house near Hollywood that had a cellar with a little stream running through it. We were all outside and Pia was stepping across the part of the water that flowed in from the outside. She was small and cute. Loved "Hairspray", what a funny movie.